Chapter 48

Ok. Here it comes. And the ending was getting sooooo long I had to chop it. Looks like TWO more chapters people, sorry.. Guess the guys thought that 51 was a nice number to end on… Ummmm, hang in there.. Kent WILL get his.

They had been at it for nearly two full hours now, the sun had lit the sky and the temperature was climbing. However, they'd only managed to clear one 4 story building and the burned out gas station. Now they were prying open the door to yet another small shop. "It's open," Patty called out unnecessarily as the door gave under his pressure. Johnny moved forward, calling out. "Fire Department! Anybody here?" He picked his way over the floor littered with broken glass from the burst windows as well as pieces of drywall, shelving, and what probably had been the products on those now slanted and failing shelves. Joel Dobson was close on his heels with Patty right behind him; Kent brought up the rear.

Johnny glanced back behind him and sighed. Bad luck seemed to have followed the ill-matched crew from the start. The captain Johnny remembered being at 48's had moved on and his replacement wasn't overly fond of paramedics. He at least acknowledged Johnny's previous time as a rescue man and lineman but didn't trust the two newly certified men. The decision was made Johnny would take Dobson and Hendricks would take Kent.

Each paramedic team would have two engine crew with them. Then when they'd rolled up on scene, Hendricks had jumped out of the truck—just like they all had—and rolled his ankle. Johnny checked him over, and wrapped him up while the captain called IC to tell them what had happened. They were told another crew would be sent out to aid them once more men came off their rest time and new crews came on duty. Till then, they were to continue with who they had. Given that Johnny was senior paramedic, he announced he'd take Joel with him since he was newest. The captain disagreed, stating that both Kent and Dobson were both new paramedics, so Johnny should have both of them on his team. It was then that Patty announced that since he wasn't needed as engineer, since the engine was only being used for transport, he would be the fourth man on Johnny's team. Captain Bardoff scowled but finally agreed and the four headed off, leaving the captain and the two linemen to check the opposite side of the street.

Johnny wasn't happy that the other team would have no one who had any first aid training but the Captain stubbornly insisted he didn't want any 'green wannbe doc' slowing 'his' rescue team down. Then he'd commented that the 'real' firemen should stick together and leave those medic types as a team and looked piercingly at Patty. Patty only grinned back and joked that he needed to be on Gage's team since he doubted that Dobson and Gage together weighed as much as him so that the four of them together were equal to the other two muscular lineman and the captain who weighed at least 250 himself. Despite the captain's scowling, Johnny still insisted that any injured they found be brought immediately back to where Hendricks had set up a first triage near the engine.

With a sigh that brought him back to his present surroundings, Johnny stopped and looked around. The explosion had damaged the inside of the shop; shelves had collapsed and the walls looked bowed. "Best make this quick. Whole thing looks like a pack of cards." Johnny grimly told his teammates. Patty looked around with a practiced eye and nodded. The paramedic was right. "Ok. You two go that way; looks like an office over there. Kent," Johnny kept his voice even as he said the name although his jaw twitched like crazy, "You're with me. We'll sweep this side and that storage area back there. Holler if you find anything. Meet back here if you don't."

Joel and Patty nodded. Kent gave Johnny a grin that set his teeth further on edge and answered, "um, loyal dogscout in lead again, kimosobe." he spoke in broken movie Indian, then switched his voice to coo, "There's a good little rescue dog." He chortled at his perceived cleverness, sure that the other two were too far away to hear. Or so he thought.

Patty heard the comment and glanced quickly at Johnny, not sure if this was a friendly teasing or not but the emotionless mask on the paramedic's face along with the muscle twitching in the jaw quickly told Patty all he needed.

Well used to his share of racial slurs, the sound of this harassment set a slow burn in Patty's blood and he resolved to pay closer attention. After all, he'd made a promise to Wart. Besides, the two hours they'd already worked had him admiring the young paramedic's innate ability to read a building and led a rescue.

Johnny led the way through the storage area, looking carefully around, under boxes and any place he thought a frightened person might have hidden or fallen. He was well aware that Kent merely followed him, occasionally glancing from side to side but doing nothing to actually search. They had cleared their area and were headed back to the designated meeting area when Johnny heard a shout. He stopped. Kent unexpectedly plowed in to him and immediately began to complain.

Head tilting this way and that to center in on the direction of the cry, Johnny hissed angrily at Kent. "Shut up already!"

Kent's face turned red and he drew himself up taller. He'd had enough of this uppity skinny redskin and it was time to take him down a notch or two. "Now you listen here Gage . . ." he began but Johnny waved his hand in a silence motion even as he again hissed. "No Kent, you listen. You're supposed to be a rescue man right now."

Patty and Joel had finished their area and had spotted Johnny and Kent. They had begun making their way toward them.

Kent was too angry to keep his tongue even as the other men approached. "No!" He growled as he grabbed Johnny's arm and jerked him around to face him. "YOU listen! I've had all I can stand of your uppity ways! How dare you think you can tell ME what I should and shouldn't do!"

Marc blinked in momentary surprise at the fire he saw in the brown eyes boring into his. This was not the quiet meek man he'd known back at 51's or even the coward he'd faced at the party. Then the spineless little prairie rat had let Roy do all the talking.

Johnny brushed the hand from his arm with surprising strength and took a step toward Kent. "I don't care what you think of me, Kent." He growled. "And once this rescue is over you can enlighten me all you want on how much better your white toast ways are to this poor ignorant savage but right now we are rescue men on a search for survivors and I am leading this team. So when I say move, you move and when I say shut up, you shut up. You don't like it?" He pointed back toward the door. "Go sit with Hendricks."

Kent's face turned redder but then he noticed the younger paramedic and Patty had returned and were looking at him warily. He tried to chuckle and gave a weak smile. "Geez Gage. Chill out! Too much caffeine man."

Johnny's face lost its intensity as his eyes shifted quickly to Patty, then Joel then back to Kent. His body still rigid, he barked, "Kent! We clear?"

Kent held up his hands in a warding gesture. "We're clear. We're clear. Geez." He looked at Dobson, tilted his head toward Johnny and rolled his eyes. Patty felt his own back muscles tighten at that action. Johnny saw it too but ignored it. He looked at the others and in a softer voice said, "I heard something. Fan out in here and look."

Johnny raised his voice and shouted, "Fire Department! Call out again so we can find you!"

Kent turned away from Johnny and muttered under his breath, "Chief Crazy Ass, hearing things again."

Patty heard the comment and from the look Joel shot the other man he did as well. But then a weak cry came, "Help me!"

Instantly Johnny's head swiveled toward the sound and he was off. Patty and Joel on his heels. Kent again was the last one. Johnny angled around a collapsed row of cabinets and bent down. He moved some pieces of gypsum board and several bolts of cloth from a shifting pile then his face changed as a gentle smile stretched his lips. "Easy now. Easy. We found you. We'll help you. My name is John; I'm a paramedic. Can you tell me where you hurt?"

The older oriental man looked up into the faces of his rescuers and smiled. "Thank you, thank you. I've been under there fo' so long."

Johnny shifted more debris away from the frail body of his patient and Joel helpfully moved the debris further out of their way. "Well, we found you now." Johnny soothed as his eyes began their assessment. "Where do you hurt?' He asked again as his fingers found the man's wrist and began taking a pulse.

The man blinked at them, bobbing his head repeatedly. "I'm … I'm not hurt. I think. I .. . I just couldn't move."

Johnny's hands went to the man's head as he cautioned, "Please don't move your neck until I can check it, Sir." He glanced up at Patty, "Can you hold C spine?" Patty nodded and one huge hand cupped the back of the thin man's neck while thumb and finger braced his jaw, firmly but gently immobilizing the neck. Johnny's eyes widened briefly as a sideways grin stretched his lips and he pointedly glanced once at his own hand before he was once more all business. Both Joel and Patty caught the silent comment and chuckled faintly. Johnny had moved his hand from the wrist to the man's belly. "Get the rest of this stuff off him. Carefully."

Patty nodded and did so one handed as Joel tossed it further from them. Patty noticed Kent hadn't even come close and now was leaning against the broken cabinets, looking bored. Johnny was now feeling down the man's arms and around his neck and head. He stopped as his hands brushed past his left ear and the man winced. Johnny looked at his hand and asked, "Did you lose consciousness, Mister . .. "

"Wong." The man supplied as he reached his hand up toward where Johnny was probing. Johnny gently intercepted his hand and placed it back down. "Mr. Wong, did you get knocked out?"

The man blinked at them. "I …I don't know. Perhaps."

Johnny pulled his flashlight out and flicked it into the patient's pupils, noting the wince when he did so. "Kent. Get a stokes and a c collar." Johnny ordered as he turned toward Joel who immediately pulled a small notebook from his pocket and with a pen looked expectantly at the older paramedic. "Tenderness on the right rib cage but no guarding. No crepitis. There's a lump behind his left ear right at the base of the skull, small laceration no longer bleeding. Pupils are equal but a little sluggish, light sensitivity. Pulse is 110, Respirations 26. I hear wheezing."

He turned back to the man and as he ran his hands down the now uncovered legs, and asked, "Mr. Wong? Do you have breathing problems? Asthma? Anything like that?"

Mr. Wong nodded, "I had a chest cold. I've been taking medicine for it." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a prescription bottle. Johnny looked at it and nodded. "Penicillin." He shook the bottle. "Have you been taking this regularly, Mr. Wong?"

The man tried to nod but Patty tightened his gentle grip, "Yes. Only two more days."

Johnny nodded and gave the man back his meds. "Make sure you tell them at the hospital ok?"

The older man tried to nod again and failed as Patty had a firm hold. Instead he said, "I'll tell them."

"Now, do you have any place you hurt now? Do you have any other health issues?"

Mr. Wong attempted a head shake to both questions then rolled his eyes to look up Patty. Patty smiled at him, "Just best not ta move it until the docs can clear you're fine, sir." The man stared at him for a few more moments then smiled gratefully. He returned his gaze to the younger dark haired fireman. "No, I don't really hurt anywhere. Just ache everywhere. No other health issues; I am a very healthy man." Johnny nodded, "Ok. Mr. Wong. We're gonna get you outta here. Let us do all the work. You let me know if you feel any pain anywhere, ok?"

Mr. Wong gave a head nod as much as Patty's hold let him and gave the paramedic a weak smile. Johnny slid his hands around the man's back and around his neck under Patty's loosened hold then shook his head at Joel. As soon as the medic pulled his hand free, Patty took a firm grip once more. Johnny stretched up and frowned toward the door. "Where's Kent with that stokes?" He muttered. Patty saw the dark look cross Joel's young face then he stood and disappeared. Johnny took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh but his face as he turned back to his patient was kind and calm.

The younger paramedic quickly reappeared carrying the stokes and the c collar, Kent wandering along behind him, his face frowning. Marc nonchalantly watched the new paramedic practically falling all over himself to help Gage and snorted derisively. "What a waste. That redskin is like a contagion; contaminating everyone he gets in contact with." He muttered as he kicked absently at the debris at his feet. The quick flash of gold caught his eye and he stopped, then moved his foot to uncover it more. Under the drywall and insulation puffs appeared a pile of jewelry. Apparently one of the now smashed cabinets had been a jewelry case. Marc causally reached down and pulled loose a jade pendant. Quickly he put it in his pocket. 'Might cheer Tammy up. Besides the chink's probably got this place over insured.' He reasoned, 'Those slant eyes are like that. That's why rates go up for other folk.' He justified that it was a thank you from the patient for Kent's presence in the man's rescue and nodded, smiling to himself.

Patty saw the interaction but not the theft. He shook his head, resolving that he would keep a closer watch on that paramedic. The other man made the skin on his neck tighten and Patty was experienced enough that he never ignored that sense of wariness. It had been proven right too many times.

Johnny was again cautioning Mr. Wong to relax as he reached down to slid his arms under Mr. Wong's back and Patty immediately did the same from the opposite side while Joel grabbed the thin legs. At Johnny's nod, they began slowly righting the man. Mr. Wong caught his breath and they immediately stopped.

"Talk to me Mr. Wong. Tell me what's happening?" Johnny coaxed.

"I . .. I got dizzy."

Johnny nodded, "Ok. What about your stomach? Do you feel like you're gonna throw up?"

He started to shake his head then instead answered as the collar prevented the movement. "No. Just dizzy. It's … it's better now."

"Ok. We're gonna get you into this basket and get you outta here." Slowly and cautiously the three men raised their patient then placed him carefully into the stokes. As Johnny once more checked pulse and respirations, Dobson undid the yellow blanket and covered the man. Then Patty and Joel tightened the straps. Johnny looked up at Kent and ordered. "You can help us carry him. Four hands on the stokes will make it steadier over this debris." Marc rolled his eyes and sighed heavily as he place himself next to Patty, opposite Joel and Johnny. "On my count, one two three." Patty lifted in time with the other two medics and instantly knew Kent was barely touching the stokes. His teeth ground silently as the three men carried Mr. Wong out.

Johnny was relieved to see the ambulance and two attendants with a gurney standing ready besides Hendricks. "I already gave him your notes, Johnny." Joel told him and Johnny flashed him a smile. "Good work."

Hendricks and the attendants swiftly replaced the man from the stokes onto the gurney. He checked his patient out quickly and found him stable. Johnny jerked his head toward the ambulance. "You goin' with them." He made it sound like a statement and Hendricks frowned.

Before the man even opened his mouth, the captain added. "Might as well. You're really no good out here and we were promised backup and relief soon anyway." Hendricks nodded and climbed into the back of the vehicle.

Johnny had turned toward the captain when he spoke and his eye caught on the man's hand. "Wait!" He told Patty just as the engineer was ready to shut the doors. Johnny lunged forward and grabbed the captain's upper arm in a surprisingly strong grip. "Cap? What happened here?"

"What? What do you . .." Bardoff began frowning and trying to pull away from the young medic. Then he noticed the blood and his head swam and his knees went weak. Johnny instantly braced him, supporting him as he calmly said, "Whoa, whoa there Cap. Why don't you have a seat right here." He gently but firmly pushed the captain onto the running board on back of the ambulance. Johnny carefully examined the coat and saw a tear just below the elbow. With gentle but experienced hands he felt further up the arm, feeling no more cuts and no protrusions.

"Cap? You hurt anywhere else?" Johnny asked.

The captain's eyes were still locked on his blood covered hand. Johnny took a firm grasp of his patient's chin and turned his head upward to look at him. "Cap? You hurt anywhere else?" he repeated.

The captain numbly shook his head, his face still white. "I didn't even feel that!"

Johnny nodded, his hands still immobilizing the arm. "Let's get your turnout off." Before he could reach for the latches, one of the captain's linemen beat him to it. "Careful, other arm first." Johnny cautioned as they worked the turnout coat off. "Now hold it up and let me work it off." They did so and Johnny moved his hand down to grab the wrist of the sleeve as he placed his other hand up into the jacket sleeve, bracing the injured arm with his own, then eased the coat all the way off, revealing a four inch gash on the captain's forearm. Blood was still slowly oozing from the cut and dribbling in a thick stream down the arm.

Johnny gently probed the wound, drawing a wince from the captain. More blood welled up and from the corner of his eye Johnny saw his patient's face blanch white and felt him sway. "Whoa!" Again he braced the man then commanded, "How 'bout you let me handle this and you, uhhhhh just look at my helmet."

The captain nodded and instead fastened his eyes on the paramedic's face. He watched as Johnny frowned, winced once then huffed. "Let's get this blood cleaned off a little so I can get a better look." Brown eyes rose and briefly met the captain's worried hazel ones. He flashed a quick grin, "Don't worry Cap. I don't think it's too bad."

Bardoff nodded and watched as the other younger medic handed the medic holding his arm a bottle of liquid and some white gauze pads. "Now Cap? This might sting some." The medic…what was his name again? Yeah. Gage. Gage told him.

The captain tensed, expecting the burn of alcohol but while there was a mild quick stab, only the sensation of cool wetness came. Bardoff relaxed and his gaze went back to the paramedic's face. "There. Much better. Oh yeah. Not too bad. We'll just get this cleaned up." Gage muttered, intent on his work. Cap felt pressure on the area and stiffened slightly. "I'm not going to the hospital." Bardoff growled at the man in front of him.

Brown eyes met his, "Just hold on. Give me a minute, give me a minute." He soothed. There was something about this young medic's whole attitude that made him feel relaxed. Bardoff allowed the stiffness to leave his shoulders. "I'm not goin' to no hospital." He repeated.

He felt something swipe his arm then the medic bent closer to the arm. "Ok. Need a couple 4x4's and some kerlex." The items were handed to Gage and Bardoff could feel something being wrapped around his arm. "When was your last tetanus shot, Cap?"

He paused trying to remember. "Last month. At my physical." A hissing sound startled him and Bardoff looked over toward his other arm just as there came the loud sound of releasing Velcro. That new medic was grinning at him as he folded up a BP cuff. "Pulse 108, respirations 14, BP 138/76." He reported to Gage. Bardoff blinked at him wondering when the hell he'd attached that thing, he'd never felt it!

The other medic nodded and those brown eyes rose up to meet Bardoff's again. The captain tightened his jaw. "I'm not going to the hospital. I'm not leaving my crew."

Johnny held up a hand, "Relax Cap. It's not as bad as it looked. No vein or artery involved from the look of it and not too deep either. Your color is a lot better now and your vitals are all in the normal range. I think that it's ok for now."

Bardoff blinked in surprise at the younger man. He wasn't sending him to the hospital? But, but, he thought these wanna be firedocs always sent everybody to the hospital for anything!

"But," the paramedic when on, and Bardoff sighed thinking 'here it comes'. "You have had some blood loss so I suggest you drink a bottle before you head back in and you should have one of the docs check it out once we get back to base. Just to be on the safe side. It might need a stitch or two." He gave the captain a lopsided grin and to the others surprise Bardoff answered him with a slight grin of his own. The captain turned to his wide-eyed crew as he stood up. "You heard the man. Hendricks, get this rig outta here. The rest of you take five and drink." He ordered and his men scrambled to do as commanded.

Patty tossed a bottle of water to Johnny who caught it with a grin. "well played, Gage." He winked at the medic who looked confused at his comment. "Nolan!" a voice barked and Patty headed quickly over to where the two linemen and Bardoff sat, away from the three medics. "Cap?"

Bardoff nodded toward the other three, "That medic, Gage. Status." He growled. Patty smiled inwardly. Gage had gained a name. He knew that with his captain that once you had a name, you had at least a little of his respect. He gave a detailed account of how Johnny had led the team and when he hesitated, Bardoff's eyes narrowed. "Give, Nolan. Where'd he screw up?"

Patty's eyes flashed anger and Bardoff noticed without making any sign he had. 'So, the tough engineer likes the kid.' But he knew his engineer would be truthful and would answer him. "It wasn't him, Cap. It was the other medic. That Kent fella." He went on to tell the comments he'd heard Kent tell Johnny and about Kent's refusal to help out. Bardoff felt his own jaw tighten even as he saw the growing disgust in his engineer. He nodded after several moments of silence, his thoughtful gaze going back to where Gage had now laid flat, a half bottle of water in his hand. "Ok. Keep an eye on the situation." He ordered. He drank the rest of his bottle, lost in thought. After several long moments, he stood, dropped the empty in the bag hanging from the engine and made his way over to the medics.

Patty had rejoined Johnny and the others after making his report and now looked up to see his captain walking toward them. Kent had his back to the group, braced against a light pole, Joel was curled in what little shade there was and Johnny was spread eagle on his back, his eyes closed and soft respirations showing if he wasn't asleep, he was certainly near it. Bardoff noticed all of them had loosened their turnout coats. Gage had his spread wide open, his uniform shirt underneath sweat stained and wrinkled, but what caught the old captain's eye was the heavy gloves tucked into his belt. He frowned slightly. Most of the younger guys stuffed them into a turnout pocket. As far as he knew, only older firefighters did the belt thing. That— and ranch hands...? Now he really looked over the sleeping medic, remembering what his engineer had said and in the strong daylight seeing for the first time the dark hair, high cheekbones and copper complexion.

Joel's eyes opened as Bardoff neared and he reached out to slap Johnny's leg. "Johnny, heads up."

"Uhhh," Johnny grunted and jerked at the hit. But sleepy brown eyes opened and swiftly scanned the area, becoming quickly alert. He sat up hastily, concern darkening his face. "Cap?" he asked even as he scrambled to his feet, worry drawing down his dark brows.

Bardoff waved him off. "I'm fine Gage. Just wanted a check on what you've already covered."

"Oh." Johnny wiped his face with his hand as he organized his still fuzzy thoughts. "Uhhhmmm, we did the four story, the gas station and that string of small shops." He pointed to each as he named them. Bardoff nodded, secretly impressed at the area covered in the time they had had. While the buildings on both sides of the street had been about the same number, there had only been single story structures for the captain and his team to clear. "We still have that place there." Gage was continuing, "Looks like it might've been a body or auto repair shop of some kind and that other store beyond it."

Bardoff nodded. "We've complete our side of the street. You get the shop, we'll get the last store. Then we can call this street cleared and by then they should be relieving us."

Johnny nodded and flashed a grin. "Sounds good, Cap." He turned to the others still on the ground, "You heard the man, let's get this finished up."

Tiredly Patty gained his feet and watched as Kent sighed heavily and glared at Johnny as he, too, stood. Joel had risen quickly and was looking at Johnny. Patty hid a snicker at the near worshipful look the kid gave the older medic. 'Oh well, he coulda picked worse.' He silently chuckled. As a unit, they headed over to what was left of what looked like a car repair shop.

It took awhile before they could find a relatively safe way into the canted structure. Johnny moved down the corridor careful of the debris scattered around. Ahead he could see the four bays they suspected the repair shop had had. He could see at least one car had obviously been up on a lift when the explosion had rocked this street. It was lying on the passenger side door now. His scanning flashlight caught sight of another car, this one with the hind wheels still in the air but the nose smashed on the floor.

"If they had cars up on the lifts, then they were working on them." Johnny muttered. Beside him, Joel nodded.

"Maybe they heard the noise and got out." Marc said, his nose wrinkled at the mess around him. Patty noticed and rolled his eyes but Johnny was intent on his flashlight scan. "I doubt it. Most of this machinery is pretty loud. They might not have heard anything until it hit."

"Well, you'd know about that grease monkey stuff, Chief." Marc muttered under his breath. Again Patty heard and looked at the paramedic. 'What's with this guy?' he thought, 'I know some paramedics are kinda uppity about their extra schooling but this guy acts like search and rescue is beneath him!'

Johnny pointed toward the car on it's side. "Patty? You and Joel check over there for anyone. Kent and I will check this one." He pointed to the one balanced on its nose. Patty bit his lip as he suddenly realized that each time Johnny divided them, he always took Kent with him—even though Kent made those obvious racial slurs. 'You'd think he'd want to be as far from him as he could get,' he mused, then stopped dead in his tracks and whirled back to stare in comprehension at the dark haired medic. 'He doesn't trust him! He keeps Kent with him because he doesn't trust him alone!' Joel had continued walking forward. Suddenly he knelt down and Patty shook himself free of his sudden revelation and hurried to his team mates side. "You found someone?" Joel nodded but then the second after that his shoulders sagged. "Dead. Crushed." He sighed. They began carefully moving the scattered equipment and tools, looking for others.

Johnny moved aside some sheet metal as he tried to get closer to the car. Kent hung back, his face full of disgust at the mess before him. Johnny clenched his teeth, "Kent, help me move this." He growled as he grasped what looked like it might have been a fender. Reluctantly Marc grabbed it and together they both tossed the piece free.

Johnny's eyes went wide and his knees hit the pavement at what was revealed underneath. His hands quickly went forward, trying to access the two mingled mangled bodies. As he moved one arm, blood spurted out, spraying him in the face and down his chest. "Damn! Awww, Damn it!" He cried out as he tried to find which one had the arterial bleed and try to tap down that already weakening flow. "Damn it Kent help me!" His hands worked frantically, his eyes only for the two in front of him.

Marc backed slowly away from him, his face white and his hands raised as if to shield himself.

In contrast, Joel and Patty had heard the paramedic's cry and rushed to his side. Joel dropped down next to Johnny, mindless of the blood quickly soaking his own hands as he pulled cloth away, trying to find the wound. Johnny had found one deep hole and had his hand plunged into it.

Joel shook his head as he tried to shift one body away. "This one's gone. Help me get him away." Patty grabbed the crushed man by the clothing and pulled him off his comrade.

Joel placed a hand on the chest revealed. "He's not breathing." Johnny's other hand had gone to the man's neck as soon as his head was freed. His tense body sagged dejectedly as he took his hand away from the man's side. He grabbed Joel's shoulders and pulled him away from where the younger man was positioning himself to begin CPR. "Don't bother, Joel. He's gone."

Joel looked up at the other medic who suddenly looked years older. Johnny waved a bloody hand at their victim. "Puncture wound to the side, musta hit the heart, side of his head's bashed in too."

Patty looked at the fender Johnny and Kent had pulled away. "That and his buddy laying on him must have slowed the bleeding down until you moved it."

Johnny nodded and sighed heavily. Then he seemed to shake it off and looked up. "You guys?'

Joel dropped his gaze. "Two. Car got 'em." He mournfully announced. Johnny clapped his least bloody hand on the younger medic's shoulder. He knew that all of them would be spending time with councilors after this. Then his face settled into a stone mask and he looked up, getting to his feet. "Kent! Why didn't you . .." His words dropped off as he spied the other medic.

Marc Kent's face was ghostly white with beads of sweat running down his forehead and upper lip. His eyes were wide and glassy, the hands he held out in a warding fashion were shaking.

Johnny stepped carefully closer, his voice now pitched to soothe. "Marc, calm down. Everything is ahwright. Just . ..just calm down."

Marc's eyes stared at Johnny's bloody hands, reaching for him and shuddered. "G . ..get back! Get away from me!" He screamed in a high pitched tone. Johnny froze.

"Calm down." He tried again but didn't move toward him.

In Marc's mind he saw Johnny laying before him, blood oozing from multiple wounds, those bloody hands reaching for him, grabbing at him. "I didn't hurt you! I didn't do it! Get away from me" He told both the figure in his mind and the one standing before him. Johnny's face took on a puzzled look. He glanced back at the others to see shock, confusion and worry on their faces.

"I didn't do anything to you!" Marc screamed, then his face turned red with rage, "It was all your own fault! You did it to yourself! You stupid, idiotic redskin! You had to charge in there, be an hero! You ruined everything! You dirty drunken savage, you bleeding b*****d!"

At that, realization flashed through Patty and he put the pieces together. He'd heard the stories, knew that Gage had nearly died from a gas explosion because another firefighter hadn't treated him but he hadn't realized who that man had been. Now he knew. He glanced at Joel and watched as the newer man also made the connections. "He's the one who nearly killed Johnny!" He breathed.

Johnny, too, had finally put it together and knew that Kent was losing it. He glanced back at the two now on their feet behind him. As he did, Kent attacked, "You should have died!" He yelled, "You should die!" He grabbed a tool from the scatter ones at his feet and threw it at Johnny before turning and running.

Johnny twisted to the side and the tool glanced off his arm. He heard Patty curse under his breath but put his hand out to stop them. "I'll handle Kent. You two finish up in here and let them know we've got code F's." That order given, he hurried off in the direction Kent had run.

Johnny made his way quickly but carefully through the ruined garage, skirting piles of debris, collapsed shelves of car parts and escaped tires. He saw movement down a hall which he suspected lead to a parts room. He paused at the door, his eyes scanning the room lit only by the sun coming through a dirty half broken window. He stepped into the room, stepping over destroyed product covering the floor. A faint noise behind him caught his attention and he turned to see Marc.

Johnny froze.

"Marc?"

Kent's head came up and a sarcastic grin crossed his face, "Don't think there's anyone in here, Chief tight Ass." He looked around. "Be a good job for you, they'll be hiring now and you've got just enough intelligence for that hands on repair stuff. At least that's what Roy told me." His voice was so matter-a-fact it sent a chill down Johnny's back.

Johnny nodded and swallowed harder before he spoke, trying to make his voice calm and steady. "I . .. uhhh, I like working on engines."

Marc nodded, "Yeah, stay away from the firewater and you'll do good here." He waved a hand around him. "Your first job can be to clean up this place. You get started and I'll put in a word for you."

Johnny blinked, not quite sure whether Kent was being sarcastic or serious. Best thing right now was to agree with anything he said until they could get out of there. He could hear more creaks and groans coming from the unstable structure.

"Ok. That sounds good. But, I'll need some things for cleaning. Why don't we go ahead and get you outta here first, then I'll come back and clean." He kept his voice calm and nonchalant.

A creaking noise, one all too familiar to any firefighter caught both their attentions and instinctively they looked up. Marc couldn't see anything out of place with the ceiling but apparently Johnny did. "Get out!" He yelled even as he lunged forward.

Marc moved backwards, away from those bloody hands and out of the younger man's reach. Whether it was from fear of Johnny making contact with him, or in acknowledgment to his warning was unknown. The move placed Marc into the doorway just as the stressed ceiling gave way. He watched dispassionately as the debris came down, watched it strike the other medic. Johnny's body collapsed with the weight of the combination of plaster, wood, tiling and pieces of metal bearing him down. Soon he was covered in debris.

Marc stared silently as small particles continued to trickle downward onto the unmoving pile. Then he took a step back as more creaking announced further collapse. As he did, the newly falling debris pushed the door shut in his face.

Marc stood unmoving in front of the door, his thoughts racing. 'Gage is dead. He has to be dead. I saw all that blood… and the way his head tilted when the debris hit his helmet.' Gage'd fallen limply, like a puppet whose strings had snapped. Surely he'd broken his neck. 'Yeah. His neck is broken. There's no way he could have survived the weight of the hit and then being buried.' And nothing had moved in that pile.

Marc's thoughts continued even as his hand reached into his pocket and pulled out his chalk. It was better this way. Gage was the cause of all his problems. Everything had been fine until he met the Indian firefighter. His family was fine; Tammy was a good wife and mother. His children had been obedient and respectful. He'd loved his job and had gotten along well with Roy. With Gage gone, things would soon get back to the way they were. Tammy would come out of her room and begin taking care of herself and her family. Amy would stop her sniveling and whining and Terry would speak with respect again instead of being sullenly silent. He'd settle into a squad with a partner, preferable Roy, and everything would be fine.

It was as if his mind and his heart were two separate entities having a discussion with each other. Right now, his mind was doing all the talking and was in control of his body. He watched impassively as his hand touched the door and began making the strike that would seal Johnny to his fate.

Then his heart started.

'You can't do that. Even for all that has happened to you, you can't do that to him. No matter what, Gage is a fellow firefighter. He trained the same as you did and has served faithfully for several years. You've heard others talk about him; both at 51's and at 16's. To do this to a fellow firefighter goes against everything you've believed for the last 4 years, both here and in San Diego. It's wrong; this is wrong and you know it.'

His hand froze as his mind and heart warred with each other.

"He's dead." He heard himself mutter, "What does it matter? It won't make any difference with that."

'He deserves to be found. He deserves a firefighter's respect.' Came the answer. Then his heart hit the clincher. "He'd do it for you."

Marc's hand dropped.

"Kent!" The voice startled him and he dropped the chalk guiltily. Two figures approached him. "There you are. C'mon this place is too unstable." One figure said. Marc faced him, not seeing the other larger figure shine his flashlight at what he'd dropped and then at the door he'd stood in front of.

"You find anybody else?" The first figure, he now recognized Dobson, asked even as he took ahold of Kent's arm.

Marc shook his head. "No. No one else."

The second figure suddenly demanded, "Where's Gage?" Marc looked blankly at him. Joel looked back from Kent to the engineer. "Marc, where's Johnny?"

Marc's heart and mind did a fast debate again. The two firefighters exchanged dark glances. Just as Patty was opening his mouth to ask again, Marc nodded toward the door. "In there." As if admitting that broke the internal war, the words came forth with growing confidence. "We . . . were looking for any other victims. Gage was further in the room than I. We heard the ceiling start to go. We headed toward the door but Gage got trapped. The . . . the debris shut the door." He concluded.

Patty moved past him and pushed hard against the door. It barely moved. "Gage!" He shouted and they all listened. "Gage! You ok?"

'He won't answer; he's dead.' Marc's inner voice said. Patty shoved the door again and this time it gave some. "Johnny! You hear me?"

"Yeah." Came a faint answer. Marc blinked rapidly and staggered slightly at that response. "Yeah, I hear ya."

Patty smiled, "You hurt bad?"

A pause, then, "Don't think so. But I'm stuck pretty good."

"Hold on, we'll be right there." This time Joel answered and the two began actively working at shoving the door open. Finally they got it opened enough that they could see into the dimly light room. Debris filled the small space nearly from wall to wall. Patty's trained gaze took in the area and he turned to the younger medic. "Go get more help. I'll try 'nd find where he is in that mess."

Joel hesitated, glancing at Kent who had backed as far away from them as he could get and now leaned against the far wall. Joel instinctively knew he was now the only paramedic on scene and knew also that even though Johnny claimed he was mostly trapped, chances were he was hurt somewhere. As if reading his thoughts Patty said, "Right now he just needs to be excavated before you can do your thing. And that won't happen until we get enough people to dig him out."

Joel gave a firm nod, knowing the big man was right and quickly headed off. Patty turned his attention back to the task at hand. "Johnny? You still with us?"

A long pause then, "Yeah."

Patty began moving pieces of lumber and ceiling away from the door so they could get it open more. "Keep talkin' I may not be one of you medic types but I know you're not to be napping."

A faint chuckle came from the pile. "You're right." Pause then, "Sorry."

Patty continued to work as he asked, "Sorry? Whatcha sorry for?"

"For your promise. To Roy."

A pang hit the big man's gut but he shoved it down and worked harder. "Don't be. Besides, I aint broke it yet." He stopped, worry darkening his face. "Unless… Gage, is there something you should be telling me?"

Johnny gave a soft sigh, as reluctant as he was to tell when he was injured, he knew in this case he had to let his rescuers know. "Ceiling hit me pretty hard. Right on top the helmet. I can feel blood . . . on my face. My . . . my neck hurts. Tingling in my arms. Can't feel . . .my . ..my legs."

Patty swore silently. Like he said, he was no medic but the symptoms Johnny was describing sure didn't sound good.

Kent nodded to himself. "His neck broke." He softly said. "I saw it go before the stuff buried him and the door slammed shut." Patty glared at him, then hissed. "Make yourself useful and move that debris further away."

Kent blinked at the large man then bent to pick up one small piece of wood and toss it further down the hallway.

Patty turned back to his task, muttering under his breath over the useless man. "Gage?"

No answer.

He stopped moving so he could listen. "John, answer me!" He bellowed.

In his dark tomb, Johnny jerked at the sound and blinked his eyes. "ummmm, yeah. I'm . .. I'm here." He slurred.

Patty felt his blood quicken at the weakened sound to the other man's voice. "Hold on Johnny." His voice gently assured. "We'll get you out. Dobson went to get more help."

Johnny felt reassured even if his current position scared him slightly. "Not goin' anywhere." He answered truthfully.

Patty keep digging and soon he heard the call of voices. "Back here!" He called out. The hallway filled with men. He recognized Joel now carrying medical equipment, several other men carrying various tools for excavation and two men in the white striped hats of captains. He nodded towards Bardoff, his eyes flicking to acknowledge the other captain. This man was thin and taller than Bardoff, with dark eyes and a face stern with determination and concern. "Where is he?" The engineer backed up at the demand.

Patty blinked in surprise. "In here."

"This is Captain Stanley. He's Gage's captain." Bardoff explained even as the tall man wedged his thin frame in the doorway. He waved at the other men who all wore equal looks of concern. "This is his crew, 51's. They're our help." Patty recognized one as another engineer…uuuh Stoker, yeah, that was right. Stoker held a white handed grip on a hook and was glaring daggers at Kent who shrank back from them. Patty instantly knew these men were Johnny's shiftmates and their concern over their brethren was obvious.

Patty grabbed the tall captain's arm and dark eyes turned to him, a stiffened body ready to blast so Patty talked quickly. He told them about what Johnny had told him about his injuries and watched the blood drain from waiting men. The captain nodded and pushed as far into the room as he could, the others pushing right behind him. Patty backed off, then grabbed his captain's arm. Quickly he told about Kent's actions proceeding his running off, kicked at the chalk piece on the floor and pointed toward the door. Patty had seen his captain with many expressions but the jaw tightened look of sheer outrage made him instinctively back up. He nodded toward the room. "We'll deal with that later. Right now we gotta get him out."

Hank had heard what the engineer had told his captain even as his eyes scanned the room and heart raced with his anger. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down—Bardoff was right; all that mattered now was getting Johnny out. He looked around the room, his heart heavy. Somewhere under all that mess was his youngest paramedic, injured and buried. "John? You there?" He called out.

No answer, just some settling of the pile.

"Johnny, you still with us?" Cap shouted again. There was a longer pause. Cap frowned. "Gage, answer me!" he bellowed in his best captain's voice. Everyone held still and they could see small shifting in the pile. Then, weakly, faintly came, "C..c..cap?"

"Johnny, tell us what's wrong." Cap moved closer to where the voice seemed to be coming from.

Again a weak answer, ". . . air . .way . . .blocked." Cap cussed quietly. "Hang on pal, we'll get you out."

Silence then softly, "Hur . . ry…."

Cap pointed slightly to the left of the center of the pile. "His voice came from here." He said even as he started digging again. As he moved one piece he saw what looked like a blood covered mannequin's hand. His face darkened more as he realized it had to be Johnny's hand sticking up out of the debris pile. He placed trembling fingers over the pulse point and felt nothing. "C'mon Johnny. Don't do this!" He turned back to the others as he put his glove back on. "I found his hand." Immediately they began working around where Cap stood.

Marc watched unemotionally as the men worked, knowing it was futile. Then, "Here! I see his helmet!"

Cap leaned closer to the hole, twisting his body to see but careful not to put any pressure where Johnny might lie. Finally he could see under Johnny's helmet the strands of black hair and closed eyes. Blood marked Johnny's forehead and dripped over his eyebrows. There was no movement. "Johnny? Johnny, open your eyes." The pale face he could see nestled in the debris didn't respond. He quickly shed his glove and reached into the hole. He could feel Johnny's skin was cool. He angled his hand under Johnny's nose. Nothing. He moved the debris a little more to see the lower part of the paramedic's face and froze. "No. His lips are blue . . ." he said under his breath. He heard others around him react as louder he declared, "He's not breathing! We're out of time! Get him out of there!"

That was all Marc needed. As the others scrambled to remove the trapped man from his tomb, he turned and made his way out of the building. As he walked toward the pickup spot, his thoughts rambled. 'He's dead. I knew he was dead. Gee. Too bad. 'Suppose they'll make a big deal over his funeral. Put him on an engine and all. Seems a waste of money, time and man power if you ask me. 'Sides, he's just a redskin, don't they just stick their bodies up on a bunch of sticks for the birds to eat? Or maybe burn them.' He smirked at that. 'Yeah, burn him. We could do that right here. The next building that catches just throw him on it. Easy and cheap.' He grinned to himself. 'I'm hungry. Hope they still have some of those sandwiches.' With that, he hopped on one of the transports and headed back to the triage center.

Once there he headed off to the table where juice, coffee, sandwiches and muffins were piled. He took one of each and headed off to a place to eat. Once he filled his belly, he sat back, sipping on his second cup as he watched the busy activities. "Hey Kent! How you doing?" came a voice and he looked up to see the red haired fellow who had sat next to him in several classes. Kent shrugged. "Ok I guess."

The man sat down next to him. "Heard you were assigned search and rescue with Gage. Wow. Imagine working with him! I mean, he was intense as an instructor! I can imagine how he is in the field! I mean . . ."

"He's dead." Marc heard his mouth saying. He was just thinking that the last thing he wanted to hear about right now was that red-skinned prairie corpse and here this boot was going on about him. Then his mouth just reacted. Now he chanced a look at the man. Blue eyes were opened wide and his mouth hung open in obvious shock.

"What!" he squeaked. "He's dead?"

"Who's dead?" Another firefighter's head turned toward them. The redheaded man answered. "John Gage! Kent here," he motioned toward Marc, "was working with him on S&R." More firefighters exchanged looks and now several faced him as a barrage of questions began. "What happened? Were you there?" Marc gave a secret smile at all the sudden attention. He gave out a sad sounding sigh as he gazed at his cup. "It was quick at least." He began and instantly his audience quieted. "We were searching some sort of auto shop and I heard the ceiling give that sound." He chanced a quick look up at the attentive dirty faces around him. "You know the one I mean." He saw several nods, most did know. "Well, I yelled for him to run and we both high-tailed it toward the door. I made it but Gage was a little slower. I turned to pull him through but it caught him…right in the helmet first. I saw his neck go."

He ducked his head back down and shook it slowly. "They're still digging his body out now but . . ." He shook his head again and gave a sad sigh. "His captain already verified it."

Around him men sat back as various mutters of sympathy/sorrow sounded. The groups slowly dispersed, some pausing to clap Marc's back in sympathy before shuffling off. Marc went back to sipping his coffee.